- PHOTO CAPTION: Should I wear Valentine's Day red - or go with the blues - or both?

- In Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 “The Birds", Mitch eyes a pair of lovebirds for his 11 year old sister's birthday gift, but specifies,“I wouldn’t want a pair of birds that were too…. demonstrative. Do you have a pair of birds that are just… friendly?”

- When a cockatiel holds his wings slightly away from his sides with his chest sticking out, from the back, the shape of the wings resembles a heart. This is a male cockatiel behavior 90% of the time and is body language showing off because he likes you. A big ripped chest is a great tool for flirting with humans and ladies. This is often followed with a few hops.

- Before Tweety appeared on the cartoon scene, Sylvester the cat squared off against a lovebird in "Life with Feathers". The lovebird, thinking his marriage is broken, attempts to commit suicide via Sylvester's jaws and digestive system - but Sylvester suspects a trick and refuses to rise to the bait. Watch this 'toon in its entirety here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3li1j_life-with-feathers_news

- The blues: The blue-crowned lorikeet is a parrot found throughout the Samoa and Tonga islands and Lau archipelago. It is still common, but declining on some islands, apparently from predation by rats. It eats nectar, pollen, and soft fruits, especially wild hibiscus and coconut & nests in holes in trees, but may also dig burrows in earth banks. -- The blue-throated macaw lives in the savanna of the Beni Department of Bolivia, nesting in "Islas" (islands) of palm trees that dot the level plains. It is not a forest dwelling bird. -- The blue-naped parrot aka blue-crowned green parrot, luzon parrot, the Philippine green parrot, and locally known as Pikoy, is a parrot found throughout the Philippines including the Talaud Islands and islands off north and east Borneo. -- The blue lorikeet aka Tahiti lorikeet, violet lorikeet, Tahitian lory, blue lory, nunbird, and indigo lory is a small lorikeet from French Polynesia and the Cook Islands. -- The blue-headed macaw aka Coulon's macaw is found in the south-west Amazon and adjacent east Andean foothills. It has a total length of about 16 in making it a member of the group of smaller macaws sometimes known as the mini-macaws, which includes any species of macaw with a total length of 20 in or less.It has a total length of about 16 in making it a member of the group of smaller macaws sometimes known as the mini-macaws, which includes any species of macaw with a total length of 20 in or less. -- The blue-fronted Amazon aka turquoise-fronted Amazon and blue-fronted parrot, is a South American species and one of the most common Amazon parrots kept in captivity as companion parrot -- Blue-eyed cockatoo males have a dark brown iris and some females have a reddish brown iris, but this small difference is not always reliable as a gender indicator. Easily mistaken for the yellow-crested and sulphur-crested cockatoos, but has a more rounded crest with more white to the frontal part, and a brighter blue eye-ring. -- The Blue-winged Parrotlet is found in much of South America. It includes the Turquoise-rumped Parrotlet which sometimes is treated as a separate species.

- In response to a video of a cockatoo feeding a French fry to a dog, and similar popuilar Facerbook posts,Irena Schulz warns,"Predatory drift happens when normal play suddenly 'drifts' over the line and the dog’s predatory instincts kick in and take over. Predatory drift can happen suddenly and unpredictably. The trigger for predatory drift can be pain, over-arousal (play that gets out of hand), or a yelp, scream, or some other sudden noise or movement. Because predatory drift is unpredictable, please keep birds out of reach of other pets who would normally be their predator."

- Readin' material:Congratulations to Gladys Boutros, author of "Bubba And The Sweet Pea" a finalist at The 2013 Next Generation Indie Book Award. Bubba is a sulphur crested cockatoo boirn with beak and feather disease who still managed to live a happy life. www.indiebookawards.com/2013_winners_and_finalists.phpwww.facebook.com/gladysboutros -- A (1927) fun fiction story called "The Devil Headed South" tells the story of a macaw named Miguel who escapes from living with a"foo foo" woman. He joins a flock of crows for several adventures. It can be found at: https://www.companionparrotonline.com/Miguel.html -- Training lorikeets by Barbara Heidenreich and more interesting information can be found in the weekly edition of Deb White's ‪#‎AvianEnrichment‬ Digest!http://paper.li/f-1388434127 -- The latest American Federation for Aviculture "Watchbird" is out, with a strong emphasis on parrot conservation and laws effecting it; and articles by Concetta Ferragamo, Lanette Raymond, Rick Jordan, Lara Joseph and more. -- Sally Blanchard's "Companion Parrot Online Magazine" special extended through the month of February. For the special, go to: https://companionparrotonline.com/CPOM_Special.html -- Karen Wingrove's online "Winged Things" January edition as always contains a varioety of interesting articles.

- The realmacaws: Some macaws are nearly extinct, although many are on the CITES appendix I, which means no legal exportation may occur. The only species not endangered is the blue and gold macaw. Macaws are in trouble for a number of reasons, but mostly due to deforestation. Macaws nest high up in dead trees, into which they gnaw a nesting hole. They need a great deal of space from other pairs of macaws as well. With the removal of trees from the forests, the competition for nesting sites becomes very great, and crowded conditons occur. With many of the high nesting sites gone, some macaws roost lower, and the babies are then subject to predation by animals which would not normally be able to get to the babies.Macaws in the wild do not have a high reproductive rate, because of the time it takes to raise a baby. The loss of one baby really has an impact. Hyacinth macaws have run into trouble because they are specialized feeders, and the palm trees which they feed on are being destroyed. Scarlet macaws and red fronted macaws are also on the endangered list. Smuggling is a problem with the red-fronted. The Spix's macaw has only seven surviving in captivity, with one wild bird left. - by Jodi Giannini www.upatsix.com

- Clubbin': Parrot Society Of New England's February Workshop is cancelled due to weather. However, their April session will feature national speaker and avian consultant to many zoos and aviaries Jason Crean visiting New England for the first time on.using tea for avian husbandry.

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New York born writer/photographer George Sommers lives in Quincy, Massachusetts with his Goffin's cockatoo and fish. His byline has appeared on local, national and international publications and online.